HSBC and Standard Chartered, the two biggest UK banks by market value, have agreed to pay almost $2.6bn in fines as part of record settlements with US authorities over money laundering allegations. HSBC announced on Tuesday that it would pay $1.92bn and enter a deferred-prosecution agreement to settle accusations that it allowed itself to be used by money launderers in Mexico and terrorist financiers in the Middle East. Standard Chartered agreed on Monday to pay $327m to several authorities in the US to settle allegations it violated US sanctions law and impeded government inquiries. That sum comes on top of the $340m the UK bank agreed to pay in August to New York state’s Department of Financial Services. (Financial Times*, BBC)
India to investigate Walmart lobbying claims
India is to launch an inquiry into claims that the American retailer, Walmart, spent millions of dollars on a lobbying campaign to persuade its Government to allow the company to open stores throughout the country. Ministers agreed with opposition demands to investigate the claims, following disclosures that Walmart had spent £16 million on lobbying in the last four years on market access issues around the world including India, where it hopes to open a number of outlets. Though widely practised, lobbying is illegal in India. Leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), India's main opposition party, said the lobbying amounted to 'bribes.' Walmart dismissed the claims and said all its payments to lobbyists were made legally in the United States. (BBC, Telegraph, Times*)
Environment
‘Rarely has so little been achieved’ at Doha climate talks
The Doha climate change talks have been labelled a failure by green campaigners, despite the Climate Change Secretary Edward Davey calling the negotiations "a modest step forward". "We can be pleased that we have maintained the momentum towards a new legally binding agreement for 2020 after the Kyoto Protocol has expired,” said Mr Davey, but there was no agreement on more stretching targets for the following years. The WWF condemned a small number of Western countries for reneging on their commitments, claiming that negotiators in Doha had "failed to deliver even the minimum expectations for the UN climate negotiations." Echoing this sentiment, Friends of the Earth executive director Andy Atkins said: "Rarely has so little been achieved by so many powerful people gathered together in one place…Wealthy nations [have] put their short-term interests ahead of the well-being of billions of people around the globe." (Business Green, Edie)
Statkraft to build £70m Scottish wind farm
The energy giant, Statkraft, has started construction work on a 66.7MW onshore wind farm in the Scottish Highlands, further strengthening its position in the UK's renewables market. The company confirmed the Berry Burn Wind Farm, near Inverness, will use 29 wind turbines provided by Enercon, and will be completed in early 2014, creating up to 50 jobs during construction. Statkraft's total investment during construction is expected to reach £70m, part of which will go into a community benefits fund for the local area. Berry Burn will be Statkraft's second onshore wind farm in the UK once complete. Last month, Statkraft unveiled plans to invest around £30m in new UK wind farm projects, while also launching an equity scheme that could boost its ability to sell clean power direct to corporate customers. (Business Green)
Big boost to US solar capacity in 2012
The US solar photo-voltaic (PV) capacity rose by 684MW in the third quarter of 2012, a 44 percent increase on the same time last year, according to new industry data. Falling panel prices and the growth of solar-lending programmes resulted in almost 118MW of capacity being installed in the residential market – an all-time high for a single quarter, according to a report by GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). Meanwhile, commercial solar installations rose 24 percent. "This quarter's record residential growth shows the power of innovation in the US solar industry," said Rhone Resch, president and chief executive of SEIA. "With costs continuing to come down and new financing options, solar energy is affordable today for more families, businesses, utilities and the military." (Business Green)
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